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Book Review: Linda, As in the Linda Murder: A Backstrom Novel by Leif GW Persson, trans. by Neil Smith

Disclosure / Disclaimer: I received this ebook, free of charge,from Vintage Crime/Black Lizard Original. via Edelweiss, for review purposes on this blog. No other compensation, monetary or in kind, has been received or implied for this post. Nor was I told how to post about it

This Danish mystery comes out later this month!

Synopsis:

From the reigning master of Scandinavian crime fiction—the second in a brilliant series of novels centered around the investigations of one irascible, obdurate, and very thirsty Swedish police officer: Detective Superintendent Evert Bäckström of the National Murder Squad.

It’s the dead of summer in the sleepy town of Växjö when twenty-year-old police cadet Linda Wallin is found lying face down in her mother’s apartment, brutally murdered and raped. With no clear motive or suspect in sight, a series of bureaucratic mix-ups has the National Crime Unit send Bäckström and his team into the countryside to solve the case. The ever-irritable Bäckström leaves his beloved goldfish behind, checks into a local hotel, and begins to reconstruct the night of Linda’s murder. But with more than a few bottles in tow, and a constantly growling stomach to look after, things don’t go so well, and Bäckström has to rely on the help of his colleagues to solve the crime—no matter how angry that will make him.

Review

I had not read book 1, but I definitely want to! I have been a big supporter of the translator french mysteries, but the new translations coming out of the Danish countries are quickly gaining on them, in my popularity. Bäckström is like Hercule Poirot gone amok. Literally. It takes a bit until the reader understands his methods and how his brilliance is hidden behind his irritating personality. But how he brings along 'the provencials' he is given to help solve the case shows he has endearing traits. The mysterious death has a 'locked room' feel, but as the team picks and shovels farther into Linda's past, they finally find the clues that lead them to the truth. If you love police procedurals, you'll adore this new voice in the field! Don't miss this one!

About the author:

LEIF GW PERSSON has chronicled the political and social development of modern Swedish society in his award-winning novels for more than three decades. He has served as an adviser to the Swedish Ministry of Justice and is Sweden’s most renowned psychological profiler. He is a professor at Sweden’s National Police Board and is considered the country’s foremost expert on crime.

Persson is internationally recognized and has been the recipient of numerous awards including The Glass Key Award for the best Scandinavian crime novel in 2011, the Swedish Academy of Crime Writers’ Award for Best Swedish Crime Novel in 1982, 2003, and 2010, and The Finnish Whodunnit Society’s Annual Award for Excellence in Foreign Crime Writing in 2012

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Welcome to my little corner of the blog-o-sphere, and Bless Your Hearts, maybe some of ya'll will read my blog and get a good laugh or two along the way! This blog is alot like cooking- a little of this and a little of that, but it all makes the blog better than following a set recipe (niche), just like when your Mama or Grandma cooks! Just like the saying "Bless her/his heart". I've heard it all my life, from Mom and my Southern relatives (yes, there is a Yankee side, sorry Robert E. Lee), and now I've caught myself saying it. Motherhood does that to you- brings out stuff you thought you'd gotten away from. So grab a cup of coffee or tea, and sit down and hopefully, you'll stay awhile and come back for more! The WELCOME mat is out, ya'll come in!